The present invention relates to a pasting and bookbinding method and a pasting and bookbinding apparatus by which the paste is linearly pasted in the vicinity of the sheet side edge to image formation processed sheets, and one side edge of the sheet set is covered by the book cover and a booklet is produced, and particularly to a pasting and bookbinding apparatus which is connected to an image forming apparatus such as a copier, facsimile device, or printer, or which can be applied for the image forming apparatus, and to an image forming apparatus provided with the pasting and bookbinding apparatus.
Generally, a sheet on which an image is recorded by a copier, facsimile device, printer and image forming apparatus main body which is a composite machine of them, is variously processed as a post-processing, by, for example, punching, stapling, central stapling and central folding, book covering, folding, stamping, or pasting and bookbinding.
As a pasting and bookbinding apparatus, the following apparatus are used.
(1) An apparatus to jet the paste onto the sheet by using a paste jetting nozzle,
(2) an apparatus in which a paste wheel is provided to the paste container, and the paste is fitted onto the outer periphery of the rotating paste wheel, and the outer periphery of the paste wheel is brought into contact with the sheet and the contact transfer is conducted,
(3) a hot melt coating apparatus to jet a mixed body of a hot melt agent (thermal fusion agent) and a heating compression air from the nozzle, or
(4) a tape pasting apparatus to glue a tape onto which a paste having the adhesion property is previously pasted, onto one side edge of a sheet set while heating the tape.
A pasting method and apparatus disclosed in Japanese Tokkaihei-No. 7-80377, is a method and apparatus in which a high pressure air is blown upon the paste jetted from the paste jetting nozzle and the paste is formed into a thin film-like one.
A bookbinding apparatus disclosed in Japanese Tokkaisho-No. 59-500907 (corresponding to U.S. Pat. No. 4,473,425) is an apparatus in which the sheet conveyed in the first direction is deflected to the second conveyance direction perpendicular to the first conveyance direction, and after that, the paste is linearly pasted on the end portion of the running sheet, and after the sheets are stacked and aligned, the sheets are pressed, aligned and book-bound.
As a back side taping bookbinding method, methods in which a tape on which the paste having the adhesion property at the time of heating is previously pasted, is pasted while being heated, or a tape on which the paste having the adhesion property when the water is included, is previously pasted, is used, are well known. The conventional tape pasting method is disclosed in Japanese Tokkaisho No. 62-284795, U.S. Pat. No. 4,985,729, Japanese Tokkaihei No. 3-151286, or No. 6-115275.
In the conventional pasting and bookbinding apparatus, there are following problems.
(1) In the back side tape pasting system, after the tape is pasted onto the backbone of sheet set, because the tape is folded to the front book cover side and the back book cover side, when the system is made so that the tape can be highly reliably pasted corresponding to the kind of sheets, or the thickness of sheet set, the structure of the apparatus becomes complicated and large sized.
(2) In a system in which the sheet set is covered by a book cover which is integrated with the front book cover and the back book cover, and the back surface of the sheet set is adhered, the book cover length corresponding to the maximum thickness of the sheet set is necessary, and after the book cover is adhered by using a special large sized book cover, a process by which the excessive book cover portion protruded from the sheet set is cut and removed, is necessary.
(3) In a pasting and bookbinding apparatus by which the sheet set, front book cover, and back book cover are aligned at high speed and accurately, and the high quality bookbinding is conducted, the structure of the apparatus becomes complicated and large sized.
(4) For pasting and bookbinding the sheet delivered at a high speed from the image forming apparatus main body, in order to maintain the high speed productivity, the structure of the apparatus becomes complicated and large sized.
(5) It is difficult that the booklet which is made by thermally adhered by the hot melt coating apparatus is recycled as the regenerated paper.
(6) When a sheet set production mechanism by which the pasting processed sheet is conveyed, stacked, and the pasted portion between sheets is pressed and the sheet set is formed, and the cover bookbinding production mechanism by which the book cover surface side of the sheet set and the back book cover surface and the back portion are covered by the book cover and adhered, are accommodated in integrated pasting and bookbinding apparatus, the waiting time for the pasting and bookbinding process is generated, and the productivity for bookbinding producing is lowered.
The first object of the present invention is to provide a pasting and bookbinding method, a pasting and bookbinding apparatus and an image forming apparatus to solve the above problems.
The second object of the present invention is to provide a pasting and bookbinding method by which the above problems are solved and the pasting and bookbinding apparatus is improved, and the formation of the sheet set and the alignment and adherence of the front book cover and back book cover are surely attained, and the deterioration of the finishing quality of the bookbinding is prevented, and the productivity at the high speed processing is maintained, a pasting and bookbinding apparatus, and an image forming apparatus provided with the pasting and bookbinding apparatus.
The first object is solved by one of the following structures of the present invention.
(1) A pasting and bookbinding method which is characterized by being structured such that: the leading edge portion of the sheet conveyed in the first conveying path having a sheet conveying means is brought into contact with a hitting member and the sheet skew is corrected; a linear paste coating portion is formed by a paste jetting means in the vicinity of the side edge portion of the sheet conveyed in the second conveying path on which the sheet is conveyed in the direction perpendicular to the first conveying path; and a plurality of sheets after paste coating processing are stacked on a sheet stacking table provided below the second conveying path, and aligned by an aligning means, and the linear pasted portion is pressed by a pressing means, and after a pasted booklet is produced, the booklet is delivered by a delivery means, and delivered onto the delivery tray provided in the conveying direction downstream of the first conveying path and on an outside side surface of the apparatus.
(2) A pasting and bookbinding apparatus which comprises: the first conveying path for positioning the sheet by correcting the sheet skew when the sheet conveyed from the outside is conveyed and the leading edge portion of the sheet is brought into contact with the contact member; the second conveying path to convey the sheet in the direction perpendicular to the first conveying path; a paste jetting means which is provided on the second conveying path and to form a paste coating portion in the vicinity of the side edge portion of the sheet; the third conveying path to reversed-convey the sheet after the paste coating processed; the fourth conveying path to stack the sheets onto the sheet stacking table provided below the second conveying path; an alignment means for aligning a plurality of sheets stacked onto sheet stacking table; a pressure means for pressing the pasted portion and producing the booklet; a delivery means for delivering the booklet; and a delivery tray which is provided on the conveying direction downstream of the first conveying path and an outside side surface of the apparatus, and which accommodates the delivered booklet.
(3) A pasting and bookbinding apparatus which comprises: the first conveying path to introduce and convey the sheet delivered from the image forming apparatus main body and to deliver from the first delivering port and stack onto the first delivery tray; and the second conveying path to branch and convey the introduced sheet from the first conveying path and form the pasted portion on the side edge portion of the sheet from a paste jetting means, and conduct the alignment processing of the sheets and pressing processing of the pasted portion, and deliver the produced booklet from the second delivery port and stack onto the second delivery tray.
(4) An image forming apparatus which comprises: an image forming apparatus main body composed of an image writing means, image forming means, and sheet conveying apparatus; and a pasting and bookbinding apparatus described in above (2) or (3) to conduct the paste coating processing on the sheet delivered from the image forming apparatus main body.
The above second object is solved by any one of the following methods and apparatus of the present invention.
(5) A pasting and bookbinding method in which the front book cover surface side and back book cover surface side and backbone portion of the sheet set are covered by the front book cover and back book cover and pasted, and the booklet is produced, wherein the front book cover has the dimension to cover the front book cover surface side and the backbone portion and a portion of the back book cover surface side, the back book cover has the same size as the sheet set, and a portion between adjacent sheets of the sheet set is adhered at the paste coating portion, and the side edge portion of the front book cover surface side and the side edge portion of the back book cover surface side and backbone portion of the sheet set are covered by the front book cover and adhered, and after the back book cover is adhered onto the front book cover, the pasted portion of the sheet set is pressed and the booklet is produced.
(6) A pasting and bookbinding apparatus which comprises: a sheet set production function to form a linear paste coating portion on the sheet surface by the paste jetting means during the conveyance of the sheet delivered from the image forming apparatus, convey and stack the pasted sheet onto the sheet stacking table, and press the pasted portion between adjacent sheets and form the sheet set; and a cover bookbinding production function to convey and align the book cover onto the sheet stacking table, to fold almost at right angle by the first creasing means, and after that, stack the pasted sheet by the sheet set production function onto the book cover successively, and further turn up the book cover by the second creasing means and cover the backbone portion of the sheet set and adhere it, and produce the booklet.
(7) The image forming apparatus of the present invention comprises: the image forming apparatus main body composed of the image writing means, image forming means, and sheet conveying means; and the pasting and bookbinding apparatus described in above (6).
(8) A pasting and bookbinding apparatus which comprises: a sheet set production apparatus to form a linear paste coating portion on the sheet surface by the paste jetting means during the conveyance of the sheet delivered from the image forming apparatus main body, convey and stack the paste coating processed sheet onto the sheet stacking table, and press the pasted portion between adjacent sheets and form the sheet set; and a cover bookbinding production apparatus which is connected to the sheet set production apparatus and which receives the sheet set formed by the sheet set production apparatus, and covers the side edge portion of the book cover surface side and the side edge portion of the back book cover surface side and the back portion of the sheet set by the paste coating processed book cover and adheres them.
(9) A pasting and bookbinding method in which the front book cover surface side and the back book cover surface side and the backbone portion of the sheet set is covered by the front book cover and the back book cover and pasted, and the booklet is produced, wherein the front book cover is fed by a front book cover feed means, and the paste coating portion is formed at a predetermined area of the front book cover by the paste jetting means, and after the front book cover is stacked at a predetermined position on the sheet stacking table by the conveying means, the sheet set formed by the sheet set production apparatus is conveyed onto the front book cover, and initially, the paste coating portion of the front book cover portion and front surface side of the sheet set are adhered, and next, the first fold is formed on the front book cover, and the backbone portion of the sheet set and the paste coating portion of the front book cover corresponding to the back portion are adhered, and further, the second fold is formed on the front book cover along the upper surface of the sheet set, and the upper surface side edge portion of the sheet set and the paste coating portion of the front book cover corresponding to the upper surface side edge portion are adhered, after that, a linear paste coating portion is formed by the paste jetting means on the back book cover fed by a back book cover feeding means, and after the sheets are conveyed onto the upper surface of the front book cover folded along the first fold by the conveying means and stacked and adhered, the pasted portions of the front book cover, sheet set, and back book cover are pressed and the pasting and bookbinding is produced.
(10) An image forming apparatus of the present invention comprises: an image forming apparatus main body composed of an image writing means, image forming means, and sheet conveying means; and a pasting and bookbinding apparatus described in above (8).